


pebble and rock

by MidnightsNightmares



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Other, Theory on How the Gaster Accident Happened, its not technical, well you could see it as alphys/gaster
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-18
Updated: 2015-12-18
Packaged: 2018-05-07 08:41:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5450402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidnightsNightmares/pseuds/MidnightsNightmares
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She could stand in the light, but she'd always be his shadow.</p>
            </blockquote>





	pebble and rock

Alphys, even though young for a scientist, wanted to believe that naturally a scientist with the most noble intentions couldn't ever be tainted with consequences that were (sometimes) included in the hypothesis or result of events. But, a simple lack of thinking and a huge lack of asking 'should we' over 'can we', or even 'why' was the awful, one step they missed before diving right into the project. Precautions were necessary, yes, but that wouldn't stop most things from going awfully.

  
That's just the thing with science; you don't include one factor, and your outcome could be much different then what you had originally hoped it would be.

  
But this?

  
This was a factor neither of them ever added in. Alphys asked many times ' _why_ ' but she never got her answer other then: "Alphys, my friend, it is merely curiosity. I don't see any harm in it."

  
And Alphys wanted to ask then if Gaster ever really looked into what 'harm' he thought didn't exist, but eventually she learned that she had no say when it came to his scientific thinking. Honestly, this was a realization she had too often about herself whenever she presented something to Gaster. A suggestion, a theory, plans - anything, and all she would have to do is look at the expression on her to face to realize she probably wasn't producing the work that he would be interested in. Something intelligent and full of thought, and sometimes, Alphys did a little too much of each but would always end up with a lack of both when she presented it to Gaster.

  
Comparison to his brilliance would be like putting a pebble and a rock on a scale to see which was heavier; it would be completely pointless. You know what the outcome will be, so why even try it? You obviously know which is heavier and which is lighter, so if you compare them, you're just wasting your time. Metaphorically speaking for that Alphys was always the pebble and Gaster the rock, and being the 'heaviest' replaced with 'intelligence' and 'creativity'. She got praise for her brilliance, even if only over little things, but she was nothing compared to Gaster. She could stand in the light, but she'd always be his shadow.

  
So to have his support was an immense pleasure.

  
She was merely a small, awkward yellow monster following around someone so amazing. She should still feel honored that Gaster even allowed this for her. Constantly he told her how nice it was to have her by his side, but sometimes Alphys felt like she was there more for show then actual help. He refused her a lot of the stuff she had proven to him that she knew how to do and typically only did little things like retrieve the pen for his notes, or sometimes even have the honor of an intellectual exchange with him over tea in his little, little break room he had.

  
That is, if Gaster would listen to what she would have to say. It was almost like he would put her down underhandedly even if he would grasp her hands and tell her she was being an amazing help. To let someone young help him attracted a lot of approval from the public, which was her suspicion why Gaster did it in the first place. Support from the monsters was a huge aspect in science, especially with his line of work and what he was interested in.

  
He was so full of ambition that he had no room for denial or the thought of a bad outcome. Every time they did have time to talk, Alphys tried to drive some sense into him that this experiment that they were planning could go completely wrong and, that if they truly wanted good results, they should wait to do it on fallen monsters.

  
No.

  
"Let's see what it does to the living," Gaster said before Alphys had time to interrupt, "before we go to rescue the dead."

  
"B-But...sir, that's my whole point."

  
"Yes?"

  
Alphys swallowed harshly, looking at the tea making small, small ripples in the cup from the spoon she had used to stir it just seconds ago. Wisps of steam rose out of it, wafting through out the quiet and dimmed room. It was a pleasant, relaxing smell. Chamomile with lots of honey from what Gaster had told her; sweet, calming and good for her anxiety. She hadn't really drank any yet, and this conversation was only making it worse for her at the moment.

  
"T-That...we don't know what it'll do to you. You can't...you can't just inject yourself with something like this a-and expect to be _okay_ afterwards - "

  
"Alphys, Alphys," he said in a soft, soothing voice. It instantly silenced her. "But if we use those who are dying, how are we supposed to know if it will save them? It's just better if we inject a living person first and see the outcome. And certainly I wouldn't want to put anyone at risk," he explained. He seemed satisfied with himself for some odd reason that Alphys couldn't exactly place a reason with. Maybe he was just that sure of himself.

  
"So using myself as the test subject is the best option I have."

  
"But sir, I-I really, really think we should hold off - "

  
"Nonsense," he said, the grin on his face widening but yet somehow still soft and gentle. "There's no reason to delay. Preparations are being made, so I would assume we start soon. Once the machine is complete, all we have to do is inject me with this...this _magnificent_ power we have found, and we'll have our result."

  
"Sir..."

  
Seeing her persistence in the topic (perhaps he was annoyed), Gaster reached over the table to gently grasp at her hand. He gave her a reassuring smile, and oh how awful it was how easily swept off her feet Alphys was. She really needed to keep pressing on the matter until Gaster realized he's taking a leap right into a dark pit of danger but his words and his smile were all she needed to fall silent.  
  
  
Honestly, she was such a push-over sometimes. But she knew this could be serious, and she knew she had to keep pressing her point until he realized what he wasn't realizing but with Gaster's soft demeanor and his words spoken as smooth as a royal silk, it was hard to argue back.

  
Well, they _weren't_ arguing. More like Gaster was proving her wrong and she was just rambling at the point about useless things.

  
"...If...if you insist," Alphys said finally, forcing herself to tear away from his eyes and ended up looking down at their hands. She wanted to draw it away, but that could be considered disrespectful. "I'll...uh...I-I'll keep documentation on you then...i-if you'd allow it."

  
"Certainly," he said and withdrew his hand. Her heart thumped in her chest, loud enough that it echoed in her ears.

  
Looking down at her now cooling tea that barely emitted anymore steam, she grasped her cup though did not drink any. Taking a deep breath, knowing even if she was just making a pointless effort at this late in the project, she decided that still, a final attempt to get him to see what her own point would not hurt anything. Why Gaster thought nothing could go wrong was way above her head, and likely high above her own thinking. Perhaps there was a factor she herself wasn't adding into the equation, and maybe she was a nuisance at this point by continuing to bring it up, but she knew she had to persist. If he eventually shushed her and demanded she never bring it up again would be the time she finally would remain silent.

  
"A-And...Gaster?"

  
Gaster raised his teacup to his lips, peering over it with an expecting glance. She couldn't stand when he did that. It really did make her think twice.

  
"If...If...this...well, I'm just saying because I really, really think you should be prepared for it."

  
He tipped the cup. She was reminded he was a skeleton; how did he drink anyway? Perhaps magic, or, he was pretending.

  
Gaster always did odd things, so it wasn't above him to do something like that.

  
"...Prepared for what?"

  
"A-A...wrong turn of events."

  
"I'm certain everything will be fine, Alphys. We just have to keep an open mind and positive thoughts."

  
Of course. Why even try, she asked herself in her head as she finally took a sip of her own tea. A little bit too much honey hit her taste buds and almost recoiled in disgust from the overload of sweetness but kept a straight face and gently, even with slightly trembling hands, set it on the saucer. It wasn't that bad, and though she wasn't fond of things that were a mouthful of sugar, Gaster went through all the trouble of making it for her, so she kept her respect in her conscience in the good. The atmosphere was always peaceful in here, but for some reason, she couldn't help but feel the future consequence haunt her mind.

  
She had to at least understand his thinking if she were to be soothed by his words.

  
"A-And sir...if I may be allowed one more question..."

  
"Yes?"

  
"If..." she swallowed harshly. "If we're trying to...y'know...see what happens when monsters are injected with determination and all...and see if their souls can survive after death..."

  
"Mhm..."

  
Alphys needed to keep it up.

  
"Then...why would we need to inject it into a living being?"

  
"Alphys," he said. His voice was always so, very soft. Even when he was demanding of her or anyone else, his voice had a gentle, gentle tone to it. He was, in general, a very soothing someone to be with. Often Alphys would go to him when she felt anxious, and all he would have to do is speak to her, and she'd relax. He'd ask her if she knew why she was feeling the way she was feeling, then talk her through it until she told him she was fine. Though she felt guilty for always bothering him, the man was a doctor after all, besides being a scientist. It was almost amazing, she reminded herself, that she has this sort of opportunity.

  
Even if sometimes she felt like she was just for show, it was amazing to have this sort of privilege.

  
"I've explained this already. To see the outcome."

  
"But determination i-is the power that humans have to persist a-after death. I'm sure we might want to inject it into dying monsters first. I-I don't think we would have...have much of an observation if someone were to be living with determination - "

"And what happens if we inject them when it's too late? We won't have results."

  
"But that's the point - it's not supposed to be...too late. It's never supposed to be too late with determination."

  
"...Hm," Gaster hummed. "True. You're absolutely right. However, again, I restate my point that the effects on the monsters afterwards are unknown."

  
There was no point to this.

  
He wasn't going to listen.

  
Gaster had his own logic and again, Alphys reminded herself that she was the pebble and he the rock.

  
She couldn't compare to his thinking, so likely it was why she couldn't understand his point of view on the matter.

  
All she could do is cross her fingers and pray that this go over smoothly.

  
**xxx**

  
First day, Gaster was fine.

  
More importantly Alphys couldn't keep her anxiety at bay for long, and of course when Gaster needed her most, she'd panicked and ran out. She couldn't watch what was happening and had a devastating fear that if she stayed, she'd have a front row seat to that awful result she kept expecting. She didn't try to mention it to Gaster again but it was still there, as if it were real foresight. All she had to do was see him being prepped for the injection with the large and suddenly frightening machine to make a scene by rushing away from it all

  
But again, she reminded herself, she was the pebble and he the rock, and her intelligence would never match his own even if he was her muse. Anything and everything in comparison to his would be as futile as bird trying to fly with no feathers.

  
Which is to say, again, completely pointless and a waste of time. That bird would have a slim chance of living like that.

  
But if she was the dying bird, then what did that say about her own fate?

  
She hid herself in the bathroom, taking deep breaths and removing her glasses. The other people, the assistants, likely would document the progress for her so she didn't have to force herself to look at him as it happened. Even though she did want to believe Gaster that he would be fine, she knew deep down, that for some reason, she just couldn't believe it. But she had to. She had to put her whole faith and trust into him if she wanted this to work out for the both of them.

  
He really believed his own science could never hurt him.

  
"Hey," she suddenly heard from the outside of the bathroom. Her breath hitched in her throat out of the sudden disturbance of the relaxing silence.  
  
  
"Alphys? You kinda just panicked and ran out."

  
"E-Eh...wh-who is...it?"

  
"Who _else_ would it be?"

  
Alphys stopped to think, though it didn't take her long.

  
Oh.

  
_Oh_.

  
"S-Sorry..." she mumbled. "C-Can you leave me alone for...a second? I...I just need to collect myself."

  
"Yeah, sure. Open up when ya feel like it though. You're not the only one that wants to panic right now."

  
A pause. He seemed to think for a moment before she heard him sigh and laugh a little.

  
"Gaster told me what you kept saying. About something going wrong."

  
Her heart thumped loudly. Somehow, just in that very second, her anxiety worsened.

  
"D-Did...he?"

  
"Yeah, it's kinda like barking up a dead tree to be honest. To be honest, I see where ya coming from and all. I kinda wish he would take those factors in for himself. He's done some crazy stuff before, but...I guess I kinda gotta admit I'm worried too."

  
Another pause. He waited for Alphys to reply until she finally walked over to the door to open it up just a crack. Enough to meet the eyes of the shorter skeleton with a smile nearly permanently plastered onto his face. He seemed like he genuinely wanted to be with her, but she wasn't his responsibility. In this lab, she was no one's responsibility and frequently had to question why people had to have curiosity over the pebble then the rock.

  
"S-Sans...shouldn't you be with him?"

  
He laughed again. "I can't really bring myself to watch either, buddo. Got room in there? We can worry about it together," he said, his smile widening as he gave her a hoping glance.

  
Sans was Gaster's assistant, much like she was, but was a lot more involved in the work. He knew things a little more in depth then she did and likely he should be the one worried over her seeing as he must know what these factors and risks. Sans was very nice, very straight-forward, and loved to crack jokes whenever he had the opportunity. She kind of wished she could be a little more open with him, to try and get to know him, but she was much too afraid to. 

  
Again, it made her question why someone like him who got to work closely with Gaster would bother with her, but still. His grin was too inviting, and his aura warm and likely good for her anxiety. And seeing as he has the same suspicion as her, she knew she couldn't reject him.

  
"Y-Yeah," she said, laughing lightly. "Yeah, come in."

**Author's Note:**

> It's gonna be multichapter. I don't really intend on any romance for Alphys and Gaster, but...science ship. That's adorable.
> 
> itstrickstersugar.tumblr.com


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